If you’re following the schedule, you should read these chapters today: Genesis 35–36, Mark 6, Job 2, Romans 6. Click on any of those references to see all the passages in one long page on BibleGateway. If you can't do all the readings today, read Job 2.

Job suffered so much personal loss in chapters 1-2 and he did so without knowing the interactions between God and Satan that caused his losses. Job knew that a long time period of prosperity and blessing had been wiped out in an astonishingly short period of time and that he wasn’t being punished for sinning because he hadn’t done anything differently in recent days than he had during the long time period of blessing.

In chapter 2, Job’s aching heart on the inside was paired with painful sores on the outside of his body. His wife, certainly mourning and distressed herself, urged Job to curse God. Her expectation was that God would judge Job finally by taking his life but that this would feel like a merciful act after all that he had suffered. Job responded with a question in verse 10b. His question was intended to be rhetorical but it is one that we should consider: “Shall we accept good from God, and not trouble?” In what sense was God responsible for this trouble in Job’s life? Why do we accept God’s blessings so eagerly but struggle to accept God’s will when life is hard and painful?

Now for your thoughts: What stood out in your Bible reading for today? What questions do you have about what you read? What are your thoughts about what I wrote above? Post them in the comments below or on our Facebook page. And, feel free to answer and interact with the questions and comments of others. Have a great day; we'll talk scripture again tomorrow.